Moving Abroad- The Pros and Cons

Moving to a different country has a variety of mixed emotions attached to it. On the one hand it is exciting as you are able to learn about a whole new culture and experience a different way of living but then you are leaving behind what you know, whether that’s just your routine or, more importantly, your family and friends. For a minority of the world’s population this is a way of life due to work, finding ourselves moving every few years. Even though this may seem like a fantastic way of life – which don’t get me wrong is for sure, there comes a point where you question where is home? For me this move will take me to my 8th country and 11th house, which compared to others, is not very many.

Unlike people who have lived in the same house for 15 years, I luckily have not got a vast amount of clutter, or personal belongings, but I will still, however, have to put some of my items in self-storage. Hopefully this will only be for a short- term until I am able to find myself a house and get everything shipped over. Last time I moved I found myself living in a hotel room for the four months due to there being a problem with the paper work, which was not ideal – oh the joys of language barriers. Thank goodness I had found a cheap self-storage unit, that’s all I have to say and wasn’t paying a fortune to store my stuff while the paperwork was sorted out.

Moving to a new home aboard has a range of advantages and disadvantages, but you just have to consider which ones are important in your situation.

The advantages of moving aboard:

Experiencing a different culture

Exploring the world whilst getting paid

Meeting new people

Become a world citizen

A better way of living

The weather- depending on where you go

Learn a new language – well you can at least try

There is also a downside:

Where is home? This can be especially difficult if you are not originally just from one country- so already you have more than one place than could be home.

Leaving the people you love behind

The language barrier- even though in most countries luckily they will speak English.

For me moving country always outweighs the downside of it. The hardest of it all is for sure leaving people behind but if you are located somewhere in Europe you can easily fly out and see them as everywhere is close enough, plus flights are just getting cheaper. Even if it is a long haul flight, of course you may not be able to fly as often but you can still go and see them at least once a year, which might not sound enough at all, but you will be so busy with your new job and life that time will fly by. In addition friends and relatives can come out and see you which most people jump at the opportunity to have an excuse to travel so really it would be a minimum of twice a year, and now there is no reason not to stay in contact on a regular basis with skype, facebook and all the other easy to use internet options to stay connected.

Welcome To Our Guides

Our simple guides are aimed at helping those of you who own your own property to make improvements that both change your lifestyle for the better but also add value to your home. They are for those who are planning to move house, want to buy a house, have just moved to a new home or have been in your current house for a while but have lost enthusiasm and are looking for home improvement ideas and interior design tips.

We have simple tips for home improvements on a budget, including colour and design advice courtesy of Lorelei from ImpulseBlogger.com and more technical advice on things like how to install tiles or create a wet room. We even like to recommend some good art for your walls from time to time if something catches our eye.

We also love looking at clever storage solutions that make the most of the storage in your home but if you really don’t have enough storage we are big fans of decluttering and have plenty of advice to help you achieve a clutter-free home. Or, failing that we know some good places to find cheap self-storage (like the lovely people over at Cambridge Self Storage) and where you can compare self storage prices if you really can’t bear to part with all your stuff.

So take a look around – we hope you find something of interest…

The Ultimate Guide To Decluttering

When you enter your home, you want to come in to a place that promotes peace and calm after a busy day. Whether you are returning home from work, a school run, or shopping, or as you get older, when you spend more and more time in your own home. When you enter a house that has had a good declutter you will find it is easier to relax and enjoy the space that you live in.

When your house is untidy and cluttered, it can make you feel on edge as you are surrounded by things that you may not really want or even need. Even if you have a cluttered house that is actually tidy (with lots of clever storage units), there is still the dreaded moment of opening the cupboards to try and find something that you are looking for that is buried beneath clutter.

According to the inimitable Eric at Eric Land Mentoring living in a clutter free home will definitely make life less stressful, make for a calmer lifestyle and make it easier to find things when you need them.

Even the older generation are benefiting from this trend as more and more of them choose to remain in their own homes as they become less mobile and less able to care for themselves. Clear spaces with little clutter then become not only calm, restful spaces but also practical and safer spaces for them. As elderly people increasingly find that homecare or 24/7 care suits their needs they are discovering that contemporary spaces with practical tile flooring and wet rooms make their lives easier.

That Changing Face of Home Ownership

It may seem that here in the UK we have a bit of an obsession with owning our own homes and constantly updating and improving them. Yet a 2015 report by accountancy firm PwC revealed that after decades of increasing home ownership, the number of new homebuyers is now in decline and set to fall further over the next 10 years. Yet there is no greater desire amongst the older generation to stay in their own homes even when it becomes difficult to do so. Studies by the not-for-profit Live-in Care Hub show this has driven an increase in people opting for home care services as a better alternative to a residential care home.

Meanwhile amongst the younger generation, an inability to save a large enough deposit to meet stringent lending criteria is the cause for so many being unable to buy their own home. This “Generation Rent” is, therefore, forced to rent privately. According to an article on 9blogtips.com by 2025, 25 per cent of all households will privately rent of whom the majority will be aged between 20 and 39.

The ability to save a large enough deposit while also paying high rents becomes less of an issue when couples buy a property jointly with combined savings. Ironically the monthly cost of home loan repayments is often less than rent for an equivalent home. Others are relying on the trust of their parents, according to finance specialist Solution Loans, who will often act as guarantors for guarantor loans which can be used to raise a deposit for their adult offspring. And the fortunate few are simply given the cash for a deposit by wealthy parents.

Whatever the different personal circumstances it seems clear that buying a home will no longer be the norm for many people.